Two Weistec supercharged CLK63's go to Vegas in 100+ degree temps and come back with a pair of 10's in 5000+ density altitude

This past weekend BenzBoost members ecampbell and jrcart went for a test and tune at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway dragstrip. BenzBoost was in attendance thanks to a generous invitation from ecampbell and Weistec was also present with Steve Atneyel and Michael Weiss. We were a bit a surprised that Earl (ecampbell) and Jim (jrcart) wanted to run in the middle of the summer with insanely hot temps in Vegas. When driving in, the temperature readout in our car showed 108 degrees at 6:15 PM. Not exactly weather for setting records.

Despite what was incredibly hot weather the cars put down some incredible numbers for the conditions. What was also surprising was just how close the cars performed to one another. They were virtually identical. To have two CLK63 Black Series cars both running 10's at the same time was quite the sight to behold. Apparently others felt the same way as despite Jim and Earl both having their pit area away from the track crowds would gather to find out exactly why these cars were running 10's when everyone else was so far off. To put it in perspective, a new Mustang GT was running 13.4@104 when the car is normally capable of 12's at around 110 mph. The weather was sucking about a half second and 6 mph, conservatively.

If anyone would like to verify the temps or density altitude, that can all be found here. At the time of the first run, which was 11 flat by Earl, the density altitude was 5136 feet. 96 degrees at night with a DA of over 5000. What else is there to say about the conditions? Well, how about no burn box or VHT? It should be clear that this was not the time for record passes yet somehow consistent 10 second runs were produced by both vehicles.

The mod list on the cars is basically the same. Both have Stage 2 M156 supercharger systems from Weistec Engineering. Race gas and slicks were used on both cars. Both have ice reservoir systems in the trunk for cooling the water/air intercooler. Both have aftermarket exhaust systems featuring aftermarket headers. The silver car (jrcart's) has some weight reduction done to it along with suspension work for better weight transfer. It also has a roll cage. The black car (ecampbell's) is full weight stock suspension. The black car actually managed better 60 foots throughout the night than the silver car. Not sure what the reason for this is but both cars were doing 1.6 60 foots consistently later on in the night.

What is also important to note is the driver of the black car, Earl, was at the strip for the first time with this car. How he managed to do so well we have no idea but his reaction time was quick and his launches were also impressive. Jim (jrcart) spent a lot of time helping Earl as well instead of focusing on himself which is commendable. The pro-tree was also a bit of an adjustment for both parties as it definitely is more difficult.

From an observer's perspective what I can conclude with is this. The weather was ridiculously hot, that much is clear. Vegas in the summer is not MIR in the winter. Nobody goes to a desert to drag race when it is at its hottest point, except these guys. Frankly, I thought they were crazy as I never even thought they could hit 10's in that weather. They did, both of them, consistently. The cars opened the eyes of everyone there. People were not even sure how to react. I'm not sure if I knew either as they were so far beyond pretty much everything else there.

We would like to thank Earl in particular for inviting myself and my friend out to Vegas. Earl was and is a complete class act. We would also like to thank Jim for allowing us to hang out in his cabana at the Hard Rock the next day which was very enjoyable. We would like to also thank the makers of Alka-Seltzer for making our hangovers more manageable. The thought of drag racing in the summer in Vegas was never something I considered before or something that could produce great results but these guys managed to do it in stunning fashion. A pair of 10's in 5000+ DA, well done and congratulations (and thanks!) to you both.

Outstanding runs, gentlemen. Question though:It's been stated that track prep was horrible, with no VHT, and no water box. However, in the posted video, I don't hear any tire spin on launch from either car. Both the spectator view, and the on-board cameras appear to show both cars dead-hooking on launch. The time slips also show both cars with 1.6x 60' times, which is good. So my question is, why was the track prep considered horrible? All you can ask for is to dead-hook, and it appears you certainly were able to do that. Jim, what does your car normally 60' at? Much better than the 1.6x shown here? Now, of course with cooler charge air, comes more HP. With more HP, comes harder launches. With harder launches, comes better 60' times. With better 60' times, comes better ETs. And with better ETs, comes more beer at the end of the day. As everyone else, I can't wait to see what these cars run this Fall.There's also the time tested formula of .10 better at the 60', means .20 off the 1/4 ET. Of course it's not exact, but close. If you guys can get down to 1.5x, you're probably gonna see 10.7x at the big end.Congrats on the run, I can only imagine the spectacle it caused.

Got it. So you guys had other runs, not on video, where you broke loose when you loaded up the converter more. Makes sense....

The reason they launched well is the long burnouts (inconsistent on the black car which had no line lock) and because of the great tire/wheel setups they had. They have room to improve there, 1.5X being the goal and attainable.

Great work guys. That said a few facts to add: 1) The current N/A 63 record is 10.78@132.45 and was ran in 1200-1500' DA+ 2) The current overall 63 record is 10.39@134.7 and was ran in 1800' DA+ in FL with 70%+ humidity. I have no doubt both Jim and Earl's cars will go low tens this fall in better air at a well prepped track, but there are no winter records at MIR for 63s at present. The ice in the trunk helps immensely that's why everyone with a fast 55K or 65/600 AMG runs one, personally I'd like to see what the cars would run without it. Eventually in time hopefully we will. The ice in trunk and race gas certainly help with the altitude/DA and not having to deal with humidity as a factor is another bonus. As for barfly, honestly, I still don't see a 15psi auto shift video and that's what his entire argument was based on. FWIW Luke his arguments were far more technically sound than your rebuttles and he was right about the BS gearing, take it fwiw--also note pretty much everyone else has quit posting as well. Otherwise, again congrats to both owners and Weistec and looking forward to the fall and cooler temps.